Activity reset

ABSTRACT

In an example implementation, a method may involve sending a message that arranges a media playback system into a pre-defined state, wherein a first playback device is in a first zone having a first zone name, a second playback device is in a second zone having a second zone name, and a queue has a particular set of media items. The method may also involve detecting a trigger indicating a request to reset the media playback system. The method may further involve causing the media playback system to revert to the pre-defined state, wherein reverting may include assigning the first zone name to the first zone and joining the first playback device to the first zone, assigning the second zone name to the second zone and joining the second playback device to the second zone, and configuring the queue with the particular set of media items.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The disclosure is related to consumer goods and, more particularly, tomethods, systems, products, features, services, and other elementsdirected to media playback or some aspect thereof.

BACKGROUND

Digital music has become readily available due in part to thedevelopment of consumer level technology that has allowed people tolisten to digital music on personal audio devices and via systems thatinclude connected speakers. With the increased availability of digitalmusic has come an increasing number of systems and devices that allow aperson to listen to his or her chosen digital music, as well as anincreasing number of preferences and settings that can be set by a userbased on his or her specific preferences, to allow the user to have thebest possible listening experience.

Options for accessing and listening to digital audio in an out-loudsetting were limited until in 2003, when SONOS, Inc. filed for one ofits first patent applications, entitled “Method for Synchronizing AudioPlayback between Multiple Networked Devices,” and began offering a mediaplayback system for sale in 2005. The Sonos Wireless HiFi System enablespeople to experience music from many sources via one or more networkedplayback devices. Through a software control application installed on asmartphone, tablet, or computer, one can play what he or she wants inany room that has a networked playback device. Additionally, using thecontroller, for example, different songs can be streamed to each roomwith a playback device, rooms can be grouped together for synchronousplayback, or the same song can be heard in all rooms synchronously.

Given the ever growing interest in digital media, there continues to bea need to develop consumer-accessible technologies to further enhancethe listening experience.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Features, aspects, and advantages of the presently disclosed technologymay be better understood with regard to the following description,appended claims, and accompanying drawings where:

FIG. 1 shows an example media playback system configuration in whichcertain embodiments may be practiced;

FIG. 2 shows a functional block diagram of an example playback device;

FIG. 3 shows a functional block diagram of an example control device;

FIG. 4 shows an example controller interface;

FIG. 5 shows an example flow diagram of an implementation of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 6 shows an example retail space in which certain embodiments may bepracticed;

FIGS. 7A and 7B show an example implementation of a household in anexample retail space, having an open and closed door respectively.

The drawings are for the purpose of illustrating example embodiments,but it is understood that the inventions are not limited to thearrangements and instrumentality shown in the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION I. Overview

Media playback systems have become increasingly popular as they areincluded in more and more homes, hotels, motels, stores, businesses andother like environments. Many of these environments encourage users ofthe system not only to play their own music, but also to customize thesystem to their liking by modifying the settings of the system based ontheir preferences.

In many environments that include a media playback system, a user of thesystem may only have access to the system for a short period of time.For instance, a hotel guest may have access to a media playback systemincluded in a hotel room during his or her stay at the hotel. During theguest's stay, he or she may be encouraged to modify the settings of themedia playback system to his or her taste, so that he or she has apositive experience during the stay. After the guest's stay, the nextguest may check into the hotel, and may have different preferences forthe media playback system. As another example, in a retail setting, acustomer may experiment with the media playback system and, in doing so,modify the settings of the media playback system to suit his or hertastes. After the first customer tries out the media playback system,the next customer may then test the media playback system, and find thatthe media playback system reflects the preferences of the firstcustomer. In some cases, the second guest or customer may have anegative association with the preferences of the first guest orcustomer. Because of the potential for a negative association, and inthe interest of providing a uniform experience for all such users, ahotel, store, or other establishment may wish to reset the mediaplayback system to a pre-defined state for each user.

Current techniques for resetting a media playback system may includeperforming a system reset or factory reset. These techniques, however,can require the entire system to reboot or re-initialize which may takesome time. The techniques can also require a user to be physicallypresent at the system to perform the reset, which may involve manuallyresetting each playback device in a system having multiple playbackdevices. Further, such techniques may leave the media playback system inan initial state, which may require that the media playback systemundergo a set-up procedure to become fully operational again. Forinstance, such a set-up procedure might involve configuring playbackdevices to be part of the media playback system, and perhaps also tohave particular roles in the system (e.g., to be members of a particularzone or zone group). As another example, set-up may also involvere-authenticating one or more accounts or media services associated withthe system. Resetting a media playback system to a state where such aset-up procedure is required before using the system might not provide adesired experience for a customer, guest, or other user of a sharedmedia playback system.

Thus, a need exists for a device and/or system that allows a mediaplayback system to reset to a pre-defined state while remaining in apre-defined state of media service. Example embodiments described hereininvolve a media playback system having a first playback device assignedto a first zone with a first zone name, a second playback deviceassigned to a second zone with a second zone name, and a queue thatincludes a particular set of media items, wherein the first and/orsecond playback devices are configured to play back from the queue.Example embodiments also include receiving a trigger indicating arequest to reset the system, which may come from a variety of sourcesand in a variety of forms. The trigger may depend on the context inwhich the media playback system is located. For example, a trigger mayoccur when a hotel check in system indicates that a new guest ischecking in to a given room. In another another example, a retail spacewith multiple sample household spaces, each having a media playbacksystem therein, may include a reset box, button, or trigger. In responseto receiving the trigger, the system may reset to the pre-defined state,while remaining in a state of media service in which music can beplayed, for example.

In one aspect, an example control system according to the presentdisclosure may include one or more processors, and a tangiblenon-transitory computer-readable memory having instructions storedthereon that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause thecontrol system to perform a set of operations which includes (i) sendinga message that arranges a media playback system into a pre-defined statein which a first zone of the media playback system includes a firstplayback device and is assigned a first zone name, a second zone of themedia playback system includes a second playback device and is assigneda second zone name, and a queue includes a particular set of media itemswherein at least one of the first zone and the second zone areconfigured to play back from the queue, and wherein each playback deviceis communicatively coupled to the control system, (ii) after sending themessage, detecting a trigger indicating a request to reset the mediaplayback system, and (iii) responsive to detecting the trigger, causingthe media playback system to revert to the pre-defined state, whereinreverting the media playback system to the pre-defined state includesassigning the first zone name to the first zone and joining the firstplayback device to the first zone, assigning the second zone name to thesecond zone and joining the second playback device to the second zone,and configuring the queue with the particular set of media items,wherein at least one of the first zone and the second zone areconfigured to play back from the queue.

In another aspect, an example method may include (i) sending a messagethat arranges a media playback system into a pre-defined state, whereinthe pre-defined state comprises a first zone of the media playbacksystem that includes a first playback device and is assigned a firstzone name, a second zone of the media playback system that includes asecond playback device and is assigned a second zone name, and a queuethat includes a particular set of media items, wherein at least one ofthe first zone and the second zone are configured to play back from thequeue, (ii) after sending the message, detecting a trigger indicating arequest to reset the media playback system, and (iii) responsive todetecting the trigger, causing the media playback system to revert tothe pre-defined state, wherein reverting the media playback system tothe pre-defined state comprises assigning the first zone name to thefirst zone and joining the first playback device to the first zone,assigning the second zone name to the second zone and joining the secondplayback device to the second zone, and configuring the queue with theparticular set of media items, wherein at least one of the first zoneand the second zone are configured to play back from the queue.

In yet another aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable memory isprovided. The non-transitory computer-readable memory has stored thereoninstructions executable by one or more processors that, when executed,cause the performance of a set of operations. The set of operationsincludes (i) sending a message that arranges a media playback systeminto a pre-defined state in which a first zone of the media playbacksystem includes a first playback device and is assigned a first zonename, a second zone of the media playback system includes a secondplayback device and is assigned a second zone name, and a queue includesa particular set of media items wherein at least one of the first zoneand second zone are configured to play back from the queue, (ii) aftersending the message, detecting a trigger indicating a request to resetthe media playback system, and (iii) responsive to detecting thetrigger, causing the media playback system to revert to the pre-definedstate, wherein reverting the media playback system to the pre-definedstate comprises assigning the first zone name to the first zone andjoining the first playback device to the first zone, assigning thesecond zone name to the second zone and joining the second playbackdevice to the second zone, and configuring the queue with the particularset of media items, wherein at least one of the first zone and thesecond zone are configured to play back from the queue.

It will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that thisdisclosure includes numerous other embodiments. While some examplesdescribed herein may refer to functions performed by given actors suchas “users” and/or other entities, it should be understood that thisdescription is for purposes of explanation only. The claims should notbe interpreted to require action by any such example actor unlessexplicitly required by the language of the claims themselves.

II. Example Operating Environment

FIG. 1 shows an example configuration of a media playback system 100 inwhich one or more embodiments disclosed herein may be practiced orimplemented. The media playback system 100 as shown is associated withan example home environment having several rooms and spaces, such as forexample, a master bedroom, an office, a dining room, and a living room.As shown in the example of FIG. 1, the media playback system 100includes playback devices 102-124, control devices 126 and 128, and awired or wireless network router 130.

Further discussions relating to the different components of the examplemedia playback system 100 and how the different components may interactto provide a user with a media experience may be found in the followingsections. While discussions herein may generally refer to the examplemedia playback system 100, technologies described herein are not limitedto applications within, among other things, the home environment asshown in FIG. 1. For instance, the technologies described herein may beuseful in environments where multi-zone audio may be desired, such as,for example, a hotel, motel, household, rental property, commercialsetting like a restaurant, business, mall or airport, a vehicle like asports utility vehicle (SUV), bus or car, a ship or boat, an airplane,and so on.

a. Example Playback Devices

FIG. 2 shows a functional block diagram of an example playback device200 that may be configured to be one or more of the playback devices102-124 of the media playback system 100 of FIG. 1. The playback device200 may include a processor 202, software components 204, memory 206,audio processing components 208, audio amplifier(s) 210, speaker(s) 212,and a network interface 214 including wireless interface(s) 216 andwired interface(s) 218. In one case, the playback device 200 may notinclude the speaker(s) 212, but rather a speaker interface forconnecting the playback device 200 to external speakers. In anothercase, the playback device 200 may include neither the speaker(s) 212 northe audio amplifier(s) 210, but rather an audio interface for connectingthe playback device 200 to an external audio amplifier or audio-visualreceiver.

In one example, the processor 202 may be a clock-driven computingcomponent configured to process input data according to instructionsstored in the memory 206. The memory 206 may be a tangiblecomputer-readable medium configured to store instructions executable bythe processor 202. For instance, the memory 206 may be data storage thatcan be loaded with one or more of the software components 204 executableby the processor 202 to achieve certain functions or operations. In oneexample, the functions or operations may involve the playback device 200retrieving audio data from an audio source or another playback device.In another example, the functions may involve the playback device 200sending audio data to another device or playback device on a network. Inyet another example, the functions or operations may involve pairing ofthe playback device 200 with one or more playback devices to create amulti-channel audio environment.

Certain functions or operations may involve the playback device 200synchronizing playback of audio content with one or more other playbackdevices. During synchronous playback, a listener will preferably not beable to perceive time-delay differences between playback of the audiocontent by the playback device 200 and the one or more other playbackdevices. U.S. Pat. No. 8,234,395 entitled, “System and method forsynchronizing operations among a plurality of independently clockeddigital data processing devices,” which is hereby incorporated byreference, provides in more detail some examples for audio playbacksynchronization among playback devices.

The memory 206 may further be configured to store data associated withthe playback device 200 such as, for example, all or part of apre-determined state of a media playback system playback device 200 is apart of, one or more zones and/or zone groups the playback device 200 isa part of, audio sources accessible by the playback device 200, or aplayback queue that the playback device 200 (or some other playbackdevice) may be associated with. The data may be stored as one or morestate variables that are periodically updated and used to describe thestate of the playback device 200. The memory 206 may also include thedata associated with the state of the other devices of the media system,and shared from time to time among the devices so that one or more ofthe devices have the most recent data associated with the system. Otherembodiments are also possible.

The audio processing components 208 may include one or moredigital-to-analog converters (DAC), an audio preprocessing component, anaudio enhancement component or a digital signal processor (DSP), and soon. In one embodiment, one or more of the audio processing components208 may be a subcomponent of the processor 202. In one example, audiocontent may be processed and/or intentionally altered by the audioprocessing components 208 to produce audio signals. The produced audiosignals may then be provided to the audio amplifier(s) 210 foramplification and playback through speaker(s) 212. Particularly, theaudio amplifier(s) 210 may include devices configured to amplify audiosignals to a level for driving one or more of the speakers 212. Thespeaker(s) 212 may include an individual transducer (e.g., a “driver”)or a complete speaker system involving an enclosure with one or moredrivers. A particular driver of the speaker(s) 212 may include, forexample, a subwoofer (e.g., for low frequencies), a mid-range driver(e.g., for middle frequencies), and/or a tweeter (e.g., for highfrequencies). In some cases, each transducer in the one or more speakers212 may be driven by an individual corresponding audio amplifier of theaudio amplifier(s) 210. In addition to producing analog signals forplayback by the playback device 200, the audio processing components 208may be configured to process audio content to be sent to one or moreother playback devices for playback.

Audio content to be processed and/or played back by the playback device200 may be received from an external source, such as via an audioline-in input connection (e.g., an auto-detecting 3.5 mm audio line-inconnection) or the network interface 214.

The network interface 214 may be configured to facilitate a data flowbetween the playback device 200 and one or more other devices on a datanetwork. As such, the playback device 200 may be configured to receiveaudio content over the data network from one or more other playbackdevices in communication with the playback device 200, network deviceswithin a local area network, or audio content sources over a wide areanetwork such as the Internet. In one example, the audio content andother signals transmitted and received by the playback device 200 may betransmitted in the form of digital packet data containing an InternetProtocol (IP)-based source address and IP-based destination addresses.In such a case, the network interface 214 may be configured to parse thedigital packet data such that the data destined for the playback device200 is properly received and processed by the playback device 200.

As shown, the network interface 214 may include wireless interface(s)216 and wired interface(s) 218. The wireless interface(s) 216 mayprovide network interface functions for the playback device 200 towirelessly communicate with other devices (e.g., other playbackdevice(s), speaker(s), receiver(s), network device(s), control device(s)within a data network the playback device 200 is associated with) inaccordance with a communication protocol (e.g., any wireless standardincluding IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.15, 4Gmobile communication standard, and so on). The wired interface(s) 218may provide network interface functions for the playback device 200 tocommunicate over a wired connection with other devices in accordancewith a communication protocol (e.g., IEEE 802.3). While the networkinterface 214 shown in FIG. 2 includes both wireless interface(s) 216and wired interface(s) 218, the network interface 214 may in someembodiments include only wireless interface(s) or only wiredinterface(s).

In one example, the playback device 200 and one other playback devicemay be paired to play two separate audio components of audio content.For instance, playback device 200 may be configured to play a leftchannel audio component, while the other playback device may beconfigured to play a right channel audio component, thereby producing orenhancing a stereo effect of the audio content. The paired playbackdevices (also referred to as “bonded playback devices”) may further playaudio content in synchrony with other playback devices.

In another example, the playback device 200 may be sonicallyconsolidated with one or more other playback devices to form a single,consolidated playback device. A consolidated playback device may beconfigured to process and reproduce sound differently than anunconsolidated playback device or playback devices that are paired,because a consolidated playback device may have additional speakerdrivers through which audio content may be rendered. For instance, ifthe playback device 200 is a playback device designed to render lowfrequency range audio content (i.e. a subwoofer), the playback device200 may be consolidated with a playback device designed to render fullfrequency range audio content. In such a case, the full frequency rangeplayback device, when consolidated with the low frequency playbackdevice 200, may be configured to render only the mid and high frequencycomponents of audio content, while the low frequency range playbackdevice 200 renders the low frequency component of the audio content. Theconsolidated playback device may further be paired with a singleplayback device or yet another consolidated playback device.

By way of illustration, SONOS, Inc. presently offers (or has offered)for sale certain playback devices including a “PLAY:1,” “PLAY:3,”“PLAY:5,” “PLAYBAR,” “CONNECT:AMP,” “CONNECT,” and “SUB.” Any otherpast, present, and/or future playback devices may additionally oralternatively be used to implement the playback devices of exampleembodiments disclosed herein. Additionally, it is understood that aplayback device is not limited to the example illustrated in FIG. 2 orto the SONOS product offerings. For example, a playback device mayinclude a wired or wireless headphone. In another example, a playbackdevice may include or interact with a docking station for personalmobile media playback devices. In yet another example, a playback devicemay be integral to another device or component such as a television, alighting fixture, or some other device for indoor or outdoor use.

b. Example Playback Zone Configurations

Referring back to the media playback system 100 of FIG. 1, theenvironment may have one or more playback zones, each with one or moreplayback devices. The media playback system 100 may be established withone or more playback zones, after which one or more zones may be added,or removed to arrive at the example configuration shown in FIG. 1. Eachzone may be given a name according to a different room or space such asan office, bathroom, master bedroom, bedroom, kitchen, dining room,living room, and/or balcony. In one case, a single playback zone mayinclude multiple rooms or spaces. In another case, a single room orspace may include multiple playback zones.

As shown in FIG. 1, the balcony, dining room, kitchen, bathroom, office,and bedroom zones each have one playback device, while the living roomand master bedroom zones each have multiple playback devices. In theliving room zone, playback devices 104, 106, 108, and 110 may beconfigured to play audio content in synchrony as individual playbackdevices, as one or more bonded playback devices, as one or moreconsolidated playback devices, or any combination thereof. Similarly, inthe case of the master bedroom, playback devices 122 and 124 may beconfigured to play audio content in synchrony as individual playbackdevices, as a bonded playback device, or as a consolidated playbackdevice.

In one example, one or more playback zones in the environment of FIG. 1may each be playing different audio content. For instance, the user maybe grilling in the balcony zone and listening to hip hop music beingplayed by the playback device 102 while another user may be preparingfood in the kitchen zone and listening to classical music being playedby the playback device 114. In another example, a playback zone may playthe same audio content in synchrony with another playback zone. Forinstance, the user may be in the office zone where the playback device118 is playing the same rock music that is being playing by playbackdevice 102 in the balcony zone. In such a case, playback devices 102 and118 may be playing the rock music in synchrony such that the user mayseamlessly (or at least substantially seamlessly) enjoy the audiocontent that is being played out-loud while moving between differentplayback zones. Synchronization among playback zones may be achieved ina manner similar to that of synchronization among playback devices, asdescribed in previously referenced U.S. Pat. No. 8,234,395.

As suggested above, the zone configurations of the media playback system100 may be dynamically modified, and in some embodiments, the mediaplayback system 100 supports numerous configurations. For instance, if auser physically moves one or more playback devices to or from a zone,the media playback system 100 may be reconfigured to accommodate thechange(s). For instance, if the user physically moves the playbackdevice 102 from the balcony zone to the office zone, the office zone maynow include both the playback device 118 and the playback device 102.The playback device 102 may be paired or grouped with the office zoneand/or renamed if so desired via a control device such as the controldevices 126 and 128. On the other hand, if the one or more playbackdevices are moved to a particular area in the home environment that isnot already a playback zone, a new playback zone may be created for theparticular area.

Further, different playback zones of the media playback system 100 maybe dynamically combined into zone groups or split up into individualplayback zones. For instance, the dining room zone and the kitchen zone114 may be combined into a zone group for a dinner party such thatplayback devices 112 and 114 may render audio content in synchrony. Onthe other hand, the living room zone may be split into a television zoneincluding playback device 104, and a listening zone including playbackdevices 106, 108, and 110, if the user wishes to listen to music in theliving room space while another user wishes to watch television.

c. Example Control Devices

FIG. 3 shows a functional block diagram of an example control device 300that may be configured to be one or both of the control devices 126 and128 of the media playback system 100. As shown, the control device 300may include a processor 302, memory 304, a network interface 306, and auser interface 308. In one example, the control device 300 may be adedicated controller for the media playback system 100. In anotherexample, the control device 300 may be a network device on which mediaplayback system controller application software may be installed, suchas for example, an iPhone™, iPad™ or any other smart phone, tablet ornetwork device (e.g., a networked computer such as a PC or Mac™).

The processor 302 may be configured to perform functions or operationsrelevant to facilitating user access, control, and configuration of themedia playback system 100. The memory 304 may be configured to storeinstructions executable by the processor 302 to perform those functionsor operations. The memory 304 may also be configured to store the mediaplayback system controller application software and other dataassociated with the media playback system 100 and the user. In someexamples, the memory 304 may be configured to store all or part of apre-determined state of the media playback system control device 300 isa part of.

In one example, the network interface 306 may be based on an industrystandard (e.g., infrared, radio, wired standards including IEEE 802.3,wireless standards including IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n,802.11ac, 802.15, 4G mobile communication standard, and so on). Thenetwork interface 306 may provide a means for the control device 300 tocommunicate with other devices in the media playback system 100. In oneexample, data and information (e.g., such as a state variable) may becommunicated between control device 300 and other devices via thenetwork interface 306. For instance, playback zone and zone groupconfigurations in the media playback system 100 may be received by thecontrol device 300 from a playback device or another network device, ortransmitted by the control device 300 to another playback device ornetwork device via the network interface 306. In some cases, the othernetwork device may be another control device.

Playback device control commands such as volume control and audioplayback control may also be communicated from the control device 300 toa playback device via the network interface 306. As suggested above,changes to configurations of the media playback system 100 may also beperformed by a user using the control device 300. The configurationchanges may include adding/removing one or more playback devices to/froma zone, adding/removing one or more zones to/from a zone group, forminga bonded or consolidated player, or separating one or more playbackdevices from a bonded or consolidated player, among others. Accordingly,the control device 300 may sometimes be referred to as a controller,whether the control device 300 is a dedicated controller or a networkdevice on which media playback system controller application software isinstalled.

The user interface 308 of the control device 300 may be configured tofacilitate user access and control of the media playback system 100, byproviding a controller interface such as the controller interface 400shown in FIG. 4. The controller interface 400 includes a playbackcontrol region 410, a playback zone region 420, a playback status region430, a playback queue region 440, and an audio content sources region450. The user interface 400 as shown is just one example of a userinterface that may be provided on a network device such as the controldevice 300 of FIG. 3 (and/or the control devices 126 and 128 of FIG. 1)and accessed by users to control a media playback system such as themedia playback system 100. Other user interfaces of varying formats,styles, and interactive sequences may alternatively be implemented onone or more network devices to provide comparable control access to amedia playback system.

The playback control region 410 may include selectable (e.g., by way oftouch or by using a cursor) icons to cause playback devices in aselected playback zone or zone group to play or pause, fast forward,rewind, skip to next, skip to previous, enter/exit shuffle mode,enter/exit repeat mode, enter/exit cross fade mode. The playback controlregion 410 may also include selectable icons to modify equalizationsettings, and playback volume, among other possibilities.

The playback zone region 420 may include representations of playbackzones within the media playback system 100. In some embodiments, thegraphical representations of playback zones may be selectable to bringup additional selectable icons to manage or configure the playback zonesin the media playback system, such as a creation of bonded zones,creation of zone groups, separation of zone groups, and renaming of zonegroups, among other possibilities.

For example, as shown, a “group” icon may be provided within each of thegraphical representations of playback zones. The “group” icon providedwithin a graphical representation of a particular zone may be selectableto bring up options to select one or more other zones in the mediaplayback system to be grouped with the particular zone. Once grouped,playback devices in the zones that have been grouped with the particularzone will be configured to play audio content in synchrony with theplayback device(s) in the particular zone. Analogously, a “group” iconmay be provided within a graphical representation of a zone group. Inthis case, the “group” icon may be selectable to bring up options todeselect one or more zones in the zone group to be removed from the zonegroup. Other interactions and implementations for grouping andungrouping zones via a user interface such as the user interface 400 arealso possible. The representations of playback zones in the playbackzone region 420 may be dynamically updated as playback zone or zonegroup configurations are modified.

The playback status region 430 may include graphical representations ofaudio content that is presently being played, previously played, orscheduled to play next in the selected playback zone or zone group. Theselected playback zone or zone group may be visually distinguished onthe user interface, such as within the playback zone region 420 and/orthe playback status region 430. The graphical representations mayinclude track title, artist name, album name, album year, track length,and other relevant information that may be useful for the user to knowwhen controlling the media playback system via the user interface 400.

The playback queue region 440 may include graphical representations ofaudio content in a playback queue associated with the selected playbackzone or zone group. In some embodiments, each playback zone or zonegroup may be associated with a playback queue containing informationcorresponding to zero or more audio items for playback by the playbackzone or zone group. For instance, each audio item in the playback queuemay comprise a uniform resource identifier (URI), a uniform resourcelocator (URL) or some other identifier that may be used by a playbackdevice in the playback zone or zone group to find and/or retrieve theaudio item from a local audio content source or a networked audiocontent source, possibly for playback by the playback device.

In one example, a playlist may be added to a playback queue, in whichcase information corresponding to each audio item in the playlist may beadded to the playback queue. In another example, audio items in aplayback queue may be saved as a playlist. In a further example, aplayback queue may be empty, or populated but “not in use” when theplayback zone or zone group is playing continuously streaming audiocontent, such as Internet radio that may continue to play untilotherwise stopped, rather than discrete audio items that have playbackdurations. In an alternative embodiment, a playback queue can includeInternet radio and/or other streaming audio content items and be “inuse” when the playback zone or zone group is playing those items. Otherexamples are also possible.

When playback zones or zone groups are “grouped” or “ungrouped,”playback queues associated with the affected playback zones or zonegroups may be cleared or re-associated. For example, if a first playbackzone including a first playback queue is grouped with a second playbackzone including a second playback queue, the established zone group mayhave an associated playback queue that is initially empty, that containsaudio items from the first playback queue (such as if the secondplayback zone was added to the first playback zone), that contains audioitems from the second playback queue (such as if the first playback zonewas added to the second playback zone), or a combination of audio itemsfrom both the first and second playback queues. Subsequently, if theestablished zone group is ungrouped, the resulting first playback zonemay be re-associated with the previous first playback queue, or beassociated with a new playback queue that is empty or contains audioitems from the playback queue associated with the established zone groupbefore the established zone group was ungrouped. Similarly, theresulting second playback zone may be re-associated with the previoussecond playback queue, or be associated with a new playback queue thatis empty, or contains audio items from the playback queue associatedwith the established zone group before the established zone group wasungrouped. Other examples are also possible.

Referring back to the user interface 400 of FIG. 4, the graphicalrepresentations of audio content in the playback queue region 440 mayinclude track titles, artist names, track lengths, and other relevantinformation associated with the audio content in the playback queue. Inone example, graphical representations of audio content may beselectable to bring up additional selectable icons to manage and/ormanipulate the playback queue and/or audio content represented in theplayback queue. For instance, a represented audio content may be removedfrom the playback queue, moved to a different position within theplayback queue, or selected to be played immediately, or after anycurrently playing audio content, among other possibilities. A playbackqueue associated with a playback zone or zone group may be stored in amemory on one or more playback devices in the playback zone or zonegroup, on a playback device that is not in the playback zone or zonegroup, and/or some other designated device.

The audio content sources region 450 may include graphicalrepresentations of selectable audio content sources from which audiocontent may be retrieved and played by the selected playback zone orzone group. Discussions pertaining to audio content sources may be foundin the following section.

d. Example Audio Content Sources

As indicated previously, one or more playback devices in a zone or zonegroup may be configured to retrieve for playback audio content (e.g.according to a corresponding URI or URL for the audio content) from avariety of available audio content sources. In one example, audiocontent may be retrieved by a playback device directly from acorresponding audio content source (e.g., a line-in connection). Inanother example, audio content may be provided to a playback device overa network via one or more other playback devices or network devices.

Example audio content sources may include a memory of one or moreplayback devices in a media playback system such as the media playbacksystem 100 of FIG. 1, local music libraries on one or more networkdevices (such as a control device, a network-enabled personal computer,or a networked-attached storage (NAS), for example), streaming audioservices providing audio content via the Internet (e.g., the cloud), oraudio sources connected to the media playback system via a line-in inputconnection on a playback device or network devise, among otherpossibilities.

In some embodiments, audio content sources may be regularly added orremoved from a media playback system such as the media playback system100 of FIG. 1. In one example, an indexing of audio items may beperformed whenever one or more audio content sources are added, removedor updated. Indexing of audio items may involve scanning foridentifiable audio items in all folders/directory shared over a networkaccessible by playback devices in the media playback system, andgenerating or updating an audio content database containing metadata(e.g., title, artist, album, track length, among others) and otherassociated information, such as a URI or URL for each identifiable audioitem found. Other examples for managing and maintaining audio contentsources may also be possible.

The above discussions relating to playback devices, controller devices,playback zone configurations, and media content sources provide onlysome examples of operating environments within which functions andmethods described below may be implemented. Other operating environmentsand configurations of media playback systems, playback devices, andnetwork devices not explicitly described herein may also be applicableand suitable for implementation of the functions and methods.

III. Example Technique to Reset a Media Playback System to a Pre-DefinedState

FIG. 5 shows a flow diagram of example implementation 500 for resettinga media playback system. Implementation 500 presents example techniquesthat can be implemented within an operating environment involving, forexample, the media playback system 100 of FIG. 1, one or more of theplayback device 200 of FIG. 2, and/or one or more of the control device300. In one example, the implementation 500 may be performed in whole orin part by a control system in communication with a media playbacksystem. Alternatively, the implementation 500 may be performed by one ormore of the playback device 200 of FIG. 2, and/or one or more of thecontrol device 300. In such cases, one or more of such systems and/ordevices may have installed thereon a software application that includesinstructions executable by one or more processors of a respectivecomputing system to cause the respective device(s) or system to performthe functions of implementation 500.

Implementation 500 may include one or more operations, functions, oractions as illustrated by one or more of blocks 502-506. Although therespective blocks are illustrated in sequential order, these blocks mayalso be performed in parallel, and/or in a different order than thosedescribed herein. Also, the various blocks may be combined into fewerblocks, divided into additional blocks, and/or removed based upon thedesired implementation. In addition, for the implementation 500 andother processes and methods disclosed herein, the flowcharts showfunctionality and operation of only a few possible implementations ofpresent embodiments. In this regard, each block may represent a module,a segment, or a portion of program code, which includes one or moreinstructions executable by a processor for implementing specific logicalfunctions or steps in the process. The program code may be stored on anytype of computer readable medium, for example, such as a storage deviceincluding a disk or hard drive.

The computer readable medium may include non-transitory computerreadable medium, for example, such as computer-readable media thatstores data for short periods of time like register memory, processorcache and Random Access Memory (RAM). The computer readable medium mayalso include non-transitory media, such as secondary or persistent longterm storage, like read only memory (ROM), optical or magnetic disks,compact-disc read only memory (CD-ROM), for example. The computerreadable media may also be any other volatile or non-volatile storagesystems. The computer readable medium may be considered a computerreadable storage medium, for example, or a tangible storage device. Inaddition, for the implementation 500 and other processes and methodsdisclosed herein, each block may represent circuitry that is wired toperform the specific logical functions in the process.

a. Arrange Media Playback System into Pre-Defined State

At block 502, implementation 500 may include arranging a media playbacksystem into a pre-defined state. For instance, a control system may senda message that arranges a media playback system into a pre-defined statein which a first zone of the media playback system includes a firstplayback device and is assigned a first zone name, a second zone of themedia playback system includes a second playback device and is assigneda second zone name, and a queue includes a particular set of media itemswherein at least one of the first zone and the second zone areconfigured to play back from the queue, and wherein each playback deviceis communicatively coupled to the control system.

In some examples, the message may be sent from a control device to oneor more other control devices and/or playback devices of the mediaplayback system. In other examples, the message may be sent from aplayback device to one or more other playback devices and/or controldevices of the media playback system. In still other examples, themessage may be sent from a system or device connected to the mediaplayback system, such as a server or cloud based system or device.

In some examples, the pre-defined state of the media playback system mayinclude one or more playback devices and/or one or more control deviceseach having one or more settings or characteristics. The pre-definedstate may include a specific combination of settings or characteristicsof the playback and/or control devices. In some examples, the one ormore settings or characteristics may include volume settings,equalization settings, room calibration settings, alarms, favorites,playlists, queues, a connection or pattern of connections betweendevices of the media playback system or other devices and systems, azone, set of zones, zone group, and/or set of zone groups associatedwith one or more of the devices, one or more media services associatedor registered with the one or more devices, one or more saved mediaitems, one or more saved preferences, one or more accounts associatedwith one or more of the devices, information logging settings, or manyother possible settings or characteristics.

In some examples, the pre-defined state of the media playback system mayinclude one or more devices or systems such as one or more televisions,speakers, lighting devices, temperature devices, odor generating,masking, or removing devices, or any number of other devices or systems.Each of these devices or systems may have one or more settings.

As indicated above, in one example, a pre-defined state includes firstand second playback devices. The first playback device is in a firstzone, and the first zone is assigned a first name, while the secondplayback device is in a second zone and, and the second zone is assigneda second zone name. For instance, the first playback device may be in afirst zone that corresponds to a kitchen of a house, and the first zonemay be named “Kitchen,” while the second playback device is in a zonethat corresponds to a living room of the house, and the second zone maybe named “Living Room.” Continuing the example, the pre-defined state ofthe media playback system may include a queue, wherein the queueincludes a particular set of media items. The queue may be stored on oneor more of the playback devices, and/or by a server or cloud basedsystem or device. The first and/or second playback devices may beconfigured to play back from the queue. For instance, the queue mayinclude a set of media items corresponding to one or more songs, and theplayback device of the Kitchen zone may be configured to play back theone or more songs.

In another example, the pre-defined state may arrange the first zone andthe second zone into a zone group. The zone group may be configured toplay back media from a shared queue in all zones of the zone group insynchrony. Other pre-defined states are possible as well.

In some examples, the pre-defined state of the media playback system maybe determined at a given moment in time. For instance, a user may pressa button or make a selection on a playback device or control device, orotherwise indicate a request to set a pre-defined state, and thepre-defined state may be determined based on the settings of the mediaplayback system when the selection is made. In a particular example, abutton may be pressed on a control interface of the control device, andthe current settings of playback devices and control devices that arepart of the media playback system may be stored as the pre-definedstate.

In other examples, a user may select one or more settings of the mediaplayback system via a user interface of a control device or playbackdevice, and the pre-defined state may be determined based on theuser-selected settings.

In still other examples, the pre-defined state may be determinedautomatically, or may be determined based on an input to the mediaplayback system, such as an instruction received via a communicationinterface of the control device or playback device. The instruction maybe transmitted from a device connected to the media playback system viaa communication network such as a local area network over an Ethernet orWiFi connection.

In some examples, the pre-defined state may be stored in a memory of oneor more devices. For instance, the pre-defined state may includeparticular settings for a plurality of playback devices that are part ofa media playback system. The particular settings for each playbackdevice may be stored respectively in a memory of each playback deviceitself. For example, a media playback system with two playback devicesmay store the particular settings of the first playback device in thememory of the first playback device, while storing the particularsettings of the second playback device in the memory of the secondplayback device. As a result, storage of the settings of the predefinedstate may be distributed across both playback devices of the mediaplayback system. In other examples, the pre-defined state may be storedby one device in the media playback system. In other examples, eachdevice in the media playback system may store all or part of thepre-defined state. In still other examples, the pre-defined state may bestored by a device or system connected to the media playback systemthrough one or more communication interfaces, such as storage on aserver or cloud based system or device.

As noted above, in some examples, one or more media playback systems maybe utilized in a hotel, retail space, or other establishment. Toillustrate, FIG. 6 depicts an example retail space 600 that includes acashier 612, product displays 614A and 614B, and example households602A, 602B, 602C, and 602D that include respective media playbacksystems. Each household may include one or more playback devices (e.g.,one or more instances of playback device 200) and one or more controldevices (e.g., one or more instances of control device 300).

A customer may enter one of the households to experience one of themedia playback systems. In other words, each household is a demo spacefor a respective media playback system. Upon a customer leaving ahousehold, a next customer entering a household, or another trigger, themedia playback system of that household may be placed into a pre-definedstate of media service, which does not reflect use or configuration ofprevious users.

As shown, household 602A includes playback devices 604A, 606A, and 608A,as well as control device 610A. In some cases, a pre-defined state mayinclude playback devices 604A, 606A, and 608A as members of respectivezones. Alternatively, two or more of playback devices 604A, 606A, and608A may be configured as members of a zone (e.g., multiple playbackdevices in a “Living Room” zone). Further, the pre-defined state mayinclude two or more of the zones being combined as a zone group (e.g.,combining the “Living Room,” “Kitchen,” and “Den” zones into a “Party”zone group). As noted above, playback devices of a zone group areconfigured to play media in synchrony with one another. Control device610A may be connected to playback devices 604A, 606A, and 608A so as toprovide a control interface to control these playback devices.

Similarly, households 602B, 602C, and 602D include playback devices anda control device(s). In particular, household 602B includes playbackdevices 604B, 606B, and 608B, as well as control device 610B. Household602C includes playback devices 604C, 606C, and 608C, as well as controldevice 610C. And, household 602D includes playback devices 604D and606D, and also control devices 608D and 610D.

The respective media playback system of each of households 602A, 602B,602C, and 602D may be configured with a particular set of media sources.Such a particular set of media sources may include streaming mediaservices, music stored locally on the respective control devices, aswell as other possible content sources as described above in connectionwith the example audio content sources.

Many streaming media services, such as SPOTIFY®, allow users to tailortheir experience to their own preferences. For instance, such servicesmay permit users of the services to create and store playlists. Uponreceiving an opt-in, such services may also track a user's play history,so as to provide improved search or media content suggestions, amongother benefits. Such tailoring may vary widely by user. As such, thepre-defined state may involve resetting such services to remove tracesof previous users while also setting up some playlists or other mediasources to get customers or guests experiencing music quickly. Further,the media playback systems may be configured to allow customers, guests,or other users to enter credentials associated with their respectiveaccounts of such streaming media services so that the users can usetheir tailored experience with a given service with the demo mediaplayback systems.

For example, a user may register a personal media service account withthe media playback system, such as the user's personal SPOTIFY® account.The personal media service account may include preferences andfunctionality specific to the user. When the media service account isregistered, the media playback system may modify a control interfacebased on the added media service account. For instance, a controlinterface, such as control interface 400 in FIG. 4, may add theregistered media service account to audio content sources region 450, orto a “my music” interface.

When the user corresponding to the registered personal media serviceaccount is finished using the media playback system, the media playbacksystem may be configured to remove the registered personal media serviceaccount from the media playback system, by removing the account from thecontrol interface. As a result, a next user of the media playback systemwill not have access to the previous user's account, and/or will not beaffected by the preferences associated with the previous user's account.

While an example retail space has been provided to illustrate exampletechniques, one having skill in the art will appreciate that suchtechniques may be applied to media playback systems in otherestablishments, such as lodging.

b. Detect Trigger

At block 504, implementation 500 may include detecting a trigger. Forinstance, after sending the message, a control system may detect atrigger indicating a request to reset the media playback system. In someexamples, one or more playback devices and/or control devices of themedia playback system may detect the trigger. The devices may detect thetrigger via a communication interface or user interface, or via one ormore connected input devices such as a touch sensor, optical sensor,pressure sensor, thermal sensor, motion sensor, or timing device, forexample. Other inputs are possible as well.

In one example, the media playback system may be located in anenvironment, and detecting the trigger indicating the request to resetthe media playback system may include detecting a change in theenvironment. For instance, the environment may be a room located in astore or other retail space (e.g., retail space 600), and the triggermay be that a customer has entered the room. In that case, the mediaplayback system may detect that a customer has entered room by using oneor more sensors, such as the motion sensor, and may determine that theperson entering the room is the trigger.

Continuing the previous example, the media playback system may include asensor that detects when a door has closed. The sensor may be a motionsensor, an optical sensor, a pressure sensor, or another type of sensor.When the door to the room is closed, the media playback system may beconfigured to determine that the door closing is a trigger, andresponsively perform one or more actions or operations.

As an illustration, FIGS. 7A and 7B show an example households 700A and700B with doors 702A and 702B, respectively, in an example retail space.Households 700A and 700B may each be one of a plurality of householdspresent in a retail space. FIG. 7A shows household 700A in a state inwhich door 702A is open. FIG. 7B shows household 700B in a second statein which door 702B is closed. A system may include one or more sensorsthat detect when door 702A or door 702B is open or closed, and one ormore actions or operation may be performed in response.

In another example, the trigger may include an indication that a periodof inactivity of the media playback system has elapsed. For instance, atiming device or timer included as part of a playback device or controldevice may determine that 10 minutes has elapsed since the last activityof the media playback system has occurred. The period of inactivity canbe as short as a few seconds, or as long as a few minutes, hours, oreven days. A period of inactivity may be particularly useful as atrigger in a case where the media playback system is used by multipleusers in a short span of time. For instance, it can be useful where themedia playback system is located in a room used for the purpose oftesting the system (e.g., one or more of the households of retail space600), in which potential customers may enter, change the settings, andleave in a short period of time.

Another example trigger may include a voice sensor receiving dataindicating a voice command to reset the media playback system. Forinstance, the media playback system may include a microphone that canreceive one or more voice commands. The media playback system may beconfigured to receive the voice command via the microphone, anddetermine that a command indicates a request to reset the media playbacksystem, such as the command “reset system,” for example. Other commandsare possible as well.

A further example trigger may include a reset button connected to amedia playback system located in a household of a retail space. Thereset button may be attached to the household, may be located at acentral location in the retail space, or may be located somewhere else.A customer or employee working in the retail space may press the buttonin order to manually cause the media playback system to reset.

In another example, the media playback system may be in a location thathas multiple guests staying for short periods of time, and the triggermay include an indication that a new guest is checking in. For instance,where the location is a hotel, motel, or other place having temporarylodging, the trigger may include an indication that a new guest haschecked into a given room that includes the media playback system. Thehotel may have, for example, a booking program on a computer system thatis connected to a media playback system included in one or more rooms ofthe hotel. When a guest checks into the hotel, the booking system maysend a message to the media playback system in the room associated withthe guest, which may act as a reset trigger. Other triggers are possibleas well.

c. Cause Media Playback System to Revert to Pre-Defined State

At block 506, implementation 500 may include causing the media playbacksystem to revert to the pre-defined state. For instance, responsive todetecting the trigger, the control system may cause the media playbacksystem to revert to the pre-defined state. Continuing the example above,reverting the media playback system to the pre-defined state may involveassigning the first zone name to the first zone and joining the firstplayback device to the first zone, assigning the second zone name to thesecond zone and joining the second playback device to the second zone,and configuring the queue with the particular set of media items, suchthat at least one of the first zone and the second zone are configuredto play back from the queue. As another example, a control system mayrevert one or more of households 602A, 602B, 602C, and/or 602D to thepre-defined state, perhaps to serve a new customer.

In some examples, reverting the media playback system to the pre-definedstate may include changing the volume settings, equalization settings,room calibration settings, alarms, favorites, playlists, queues, aconnection or pattern of connections between devices of the mediaplayback system or other devices and systems, a zone, set of zones, zonegroup, and/or set of zone groups associated with one or more of thedevices, one or more media services associated or registered with theone or more devices, one or more saved media items, one or more savedpreferences, an account associated with one or more of the devices,logging information settings, or many other possible settings orcharacteristics of one or more playback devices or control devices ofthe media playback system.

In addition, reverting the media playback system may include changingthe settings of one or more other devices or systems such as the one ormore televisions, speakers, lighting devices, temperature devices, odorgenerating, masking, or removing devices, or any number of other devicesor systems. This may include displaying one or more images or videos onthe television, or changing a temperature setting, lighting setting, orodor, for example.

In one example, reverting the media playback system to the pre-definedstate may include transmitting a message that causes one or moresettings or characteristics to change. The message may be transmitted byone or more control devices to one or more playback devices, which may,responsive to receiving the message, revert to the pre-defined state. Inother examples, the message may be sent to one or more media servicesassociated with the media playback system, such as SPOTIFY®, which maycause the one or more media services to reset an account to an initialstate.

In another example, reverting the media playback system to thepre-defined state may include joining the first zone and the second zoneinto a zone group. One or more playback devices may be included in thefirst zone and/or the second zone, and responsive to receiving atrigger, the media playback system may join the first zone and thesecond zone to create a zone group. As a particular example, a mediaplayback system may be used in a household an under normalcircumstances, may include three zones named “Kitchen,” “Living Room,”and “Patio.” Upon detecting a trigger, the media playback system mayrevert to a pre-defined state in which the three zones are joinedtogether in a zone group named “Party,” which allows all playbackdevices in the three zones to play in synchrony.

In some examples, reverting the media playback system may includeconfiguring a shared queue of a zone group with a particular set ofmedia items. For instance, in the previous example, in addition tojoining the three zones together into the “Party” zone group, the mediaplayback system may, responsive to detecting the trigger, populate ashared queue of the zone group with a set of media items. In someexamples the set of media items may be an empty set, such thatresponsive to detecting the trigger the media playback system clears thequeue. In other examples, the set of media items may include a set ofpre-selected media items chosen from a list or database.

In some examples, reverting the media playback system to the pre-definedstate may include sending a message that resets the first zone and thesecond zone to respective pre-defined volume levels such that the firstplayback device and the second playback device are configured to playback media at the respective pre-defined volume levels.

In other examples, reverting the media playback system to thepre-defined state may include sending a message that resets the firstzone and the second zone to respective pre-defined equalizations suchthat the first playback device and the second playback device areconfigured to playback media with the respective pre-definedequalizations.

In still further examples, the first playback device and the secondplayback device may be positioned in respective locations in anenvironment, and reverting the media playback system to the pre-definedstate may include applying respective calibrations that correspond tothe respective locations of the first playback device and the secondplayback device in the environment. For instance, some examplecalibration procedures may calibrate a playback device for a particularposition within a listening area so as to offset the acoustics of theenvironment during operation. As part of reverting the pre-definedstate, the control system may revert to this calibration, which may havebeen changed by a user experimenting with the system.

In addition, for the implementation 500 and other processes and methodsdisclosed herein, the flowchart shows functionality and operation of onepossible implementation of present embodiments. In this regard, eachblock may represent a module, a segment, or a portion of program code,which includes one or more instructions executable by a processor forimplementing specific logical functions or steps in the process. Theprogram code may be stored on any type of computer readable medium, forexample, such as a storage device including a disk or hard drive. Thecomputer readable medium may include non-transitory computer readablemedium, for example, such as computer-readable media that stores datafor short periods of time like register memory, processor cache andRandom Access Memory (RAM). The computer readable medium may alsoinclude non-transitory media, such as secondary or persistent long termstorage, like read only memory (ROM), optical or magnetic disks,compact-disc read only memory (CD-ROM), for example. The computerreadable media may also be any other volatile or non-volatile storagesystems. The computer readable medium may be considered a computerreadable storage medium, for example, or a tangible storage device. Inaddition, for the method 500 and other processes and methods disclosedherein, each block in FIG. 5 may represent circuitry that is wired toperform the specific logical functions in the process.

IV. Conclusion

The descriptions above disclose, among other things, various examplesystems, methods, apparatus, and articles of manufacture including,among other components, firmware and/or software executed on hardware.It is understood that such examples are merely illustrative and shouldnot be considered as limiting. For example, it is contemplated that anyor all of the firmware, hardware, and/or software aspects or componentscan be embodied exclusively in hardware, exclusively in software,exclusively in firmware, or in any combination of hardware, software,and/or firmware. Accordingly, the examples provided are not the onlyway(s) to implement such systems, methods, apparatus, and/or articles ofmanufacture.

As indicated above, the present application involves resetting a mediaplayback system to a pre-defined state. In one aspect, a control systemis provided. The control system includes one or more processors and atangible non-transitory computer-readable memory having instructionsstored thereon that, when executed by the one or more processors, causethe control system to perform a set of operations. The set of operationsmay include sending a message that arranges a media playback system intoa pre-defined state. The predefined state may include a first playbackdevice in a first zone having a first zone name, a second playbackdevice in a second zone having a second zone name, and a queue having aparticular set of media items. The set of operations may also include,after sending the message, detecting a trigger indicating a request toreset the media playback system. The set of operations may furtherinclude, responsive to detecting the trigger, causing the media playbacksystem to revert to the pre-defined state. Reverting to the pre-definedstate may include assigning the first zone name to the first zone andjoining the first playback device to the first zone, assigning thesecond zone name to the second zone and joining the second playbackdevice to the second zone, and configuring the queue with the particularset of media items.

In another aspect, a method is provided. The method may involve sendinga message that arranges a media playback system into a pre-definedstate. The predefined state may include a first playback device in afirst zone having a first zone name, a second playback device in asecond zone having a second zone name, and a queue having a particularset of media items. The method may also involve, after sending themessage, detecting a trigger indicating a request to reset the mediaplayback system. The method may further involve, responsive to detectingthe trigger, causing the media playback system to revert to thepre-defined state. Reverting to the pre-defined state may includeassigning the first zone name to the first zone and joining the firstplayback device to the first zone, assigning the second zone name to thesecond zone and joining the second playback device to the second zone,and configuring the queue with the particular set of media items.

In yet another aspect, a non-transitory computer readable memory isprovided. The non-transitory computer readable memory has stored thereoninstructions executable by a computing device to cause the computingdevice to perform functions. The functions may include sending a messagethat arranges a media playback system into a pre-defined state. Thepredefined state may include a first playback device in a first zonehaving a first zone name, a second playback device in a second zonehaving a second zone name, and a queue having a particular set of mediaitems. The functions may also include, after sending the message,detecting a trigger indicating a request to reset the media playbacksystem. The functions may further include, responsive to detecting thetrigger, causing the media playback system to revert to the pre-definedstate. Reverting to the pre-defined state may include assigning thefirst zone name to the first zone and joining the first playback deviceto the first zone, assigning the second zone name to the second zone andjoining the second playback.

Additionally, references herein to “embodiment” means that a particularfeature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with theembodiment can be included in at least one example embodiment of aninvention. The appearances of this phrase in various places in thespecification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment,nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of otherembodiments. As such, the embodiments described herein, explicitly andimplicitly understood by one skilled in the art, can be combined withother embodiments.

The specification is presented largely in terms of illustrativeenvironments, systems, procedures, steps, logic blocks, processing, andother symbolic representations that directly or indirectly resemble theoperations of data processing devices coupled to networks. These processdescriptions and representations are typically used by those skilled inthe art to most effectively convey the substance of their work to othersskilled in the art. Numerous specific details are set forth to provide athorough understanding of the present disclosure. However, it isunderstood to those skilled in the art that certain embodiments of thepresent disclosure can be practiced without certain, specific details.In other instances, well known methods, procedures, components, andcircuitry have not been described in detail to avoid unnecessarilyobscuring aspects of the embodiments. Accordingly, the scope of thepresent disclosure is defined by the appended claims rather than theforgoing description of embodiments.

When any of the appended claims are read to cover a purely softwareand/or firmware implementation, at least one of the elements in at leastone example is hereby expressly defined to include a tangible,non-transitory medium such as a memory, DVD, CD, Blu-ray, and so on,storing the software and/or firmware.

We claim:
 1. A control system for controlling a plurality of mediaplayback systems within a place of accommodation, each media playbacksystem comprising at least one playback device, and a particular mediaplayback system within a given room of the place of accommodationcomprising a first playback device and a second playback device, thecontrol system comprising: one or more processors; and a tangiblenon-transitory computer-readable memory storing instructions that, whenexecuted by the one or more processors, cause the control system toperform operations comprising: sending, via a network interface of thecontrol system to at least one of the first playback device and thesecond playback device, a message that configures the particular mediaplayback system to operate a pre-defined first state in which: a firstzone of the particular media playback system includes the first playbackdevice and is assigned a first zone name, a second zone of theparticular media playback system includes the second playback device andis assigned a second zone name, and a queue includes a first set of oneor more media items, wherein at least one of the first zone and thesecond zone is configured to play back media items from the queue;operating the particular media playback system in a second state,wherein operating the particular media playback system in the secondstate comprises: receiving, via a guest control device of the particularmedia playback system, input indicative of credentials associated with afirst account of a streaming media service, wherein the guest controldevice is configured to control only the particular media playbacksystem; populating the queue with a second set of one or more mediaitems, wherein the second set of media items includes one or more mediaitems associated with the first account of the streaming media service;and causing one of the first zone and the second zone to play back atleast one of the one or more media items associated with the firstaccount of the streaming media service; after causing one of the firstzone and the second zone to play back at least one of the one or moremedia items associated with the first account of the streaming mediaservice, receiving, via a network interface from one or more servers ofa booking system configured to manage room reservations for the place ofaccommodation, a message indicating that a new guest is checking into agiven room that contains the particular media playback system, whereinthe message is a trigger that causes the media playback system to revertto the pre-defined first state; and responsive to receiving the messageindicating that the new guest is checking into the given room, causingthe particular media playback system to revert to the pre-defined firststate, wherein reverting the particular media playback system to thepre-defined first state comprises: responsive to the trigger, populatingthe queue with the first set of media items, wherein populating thequeue with the first set of media items comprises removing, from thequeue, the one or more media items associated with the first account ofthe streaming media service; and responsive to the trigger, resettingthe streaming media service, wherein resetting the streaming mediaservice comprises removing the first account of the streaming mediaservice from the particular media playback system.
 2. The control systemof claim 1, wherein operating the control system in the pre-definedfirst state further comprises arranging the first zone and the secondzone into a zone group configured to play back media items from a sharedqueue; and wherein reverting the particular media playback system to thepre-defined first state further comprises: responsive to the trigger,joining the first zone and the second zone into the zone group.
 3. Thecontrol system of claim 2, wherein operating the control system in thepre-defined first state further comprises configuring the shared queueof the zone group with the first set of one or more media items.
 4. Thecontrol system of claim 1, wherein operating the control system in thesecond state further comprises clearing the queue of media items.
 5. Thecontrol system of claim 1, wherein reverting the particular mediaplayback system to the pre-defined first state further comprises:responsive to the trigger, sending a message that resets the first zoneand the second zone to respective pre-defined volume levels such thatthe first playback device and the second playback device are configuredto play back media at the respective pre-defined volume levels.
 6. Thecontrol system of claim 1, wherein reverting the particular mediaplayback system to the pre-defined first state further comprises:responsive to the trigger, sending a message that resets the first zoneand the second zone to respective pre-defined equalizations such thatthe first playback device and the second playback device are configuredto playback media with the respective pre-defined equalizations.
 7. Thecontrol system of claim 1, wherein the first playback device and thesecond playback device are positioned in respective locations in anenvironment, and wherein reverting the particular media playback systemto the pre-defined first state further comprises: responsive to thetrigger, applying, to the first playback device and the second playbackdevice, respective calibrations that correspond to their respectivelocations in the environment.
 8. The control system of claim 1, whereinreverting the particular media playback system to the pre-defined firststate comprises: transmitting, via the network interface to at least oneof the first playback device and the second playback device, a messagethat instructs the first playback device and the second playback deviceto revert to the pre-defined first state.
 9. A method of operating acontrol system for controlling a plurality of media playback systemswithin a place of accommodation, each media playback system comprisingat least one playback device, a particular media playback system withina given room of the place of accommodation comprising a first playbackdevice and a second playback device, the method comprising: sending, viaa network interface of the control system to at least one of the firstplayback device and the second playback device, a message thatconfigures the particular media playback system to operate a pre-definedfirst state in which: a first zone of the particular media playbacksystem includes the first playback device and is assigned a first zonename, a second zone of the particular media playback system includes thesecond playback device and is assigned a second zone name, and a queueincludes a first set of one or more media items, wherein at least one ofthe first zone and the second zone is configured to play back mediaitems from the queue; operating the particular media playback system ina second state, wherein operating the particular media playback systemin the second state comprises: receiving, via a guest control device ofthe particular media playback system, input indicative of credentialsassociated with a first account of a streaming media service, whereinthe guest control device is configured to control only the particularmedia playback system; populating the queue with a second set of one ormore media items, wherein the second set of media items includes one ormore media items associated with the first account of the streamingmedia service; and causing one of the first zone and the second zone toplay back at least one of the one or more media items associated withthe first account of the streaming media service; after causing one ofthe first zone and the second zone to play back at least one of the oneor more media items associated with the first account of the streamingmedia service, receiving, via a network interface from one or moreservers of a booking system configured to manage room reservations forthe place of accommodation, a message indicating that a new guest ischecking into a given room that contains the particular media playbacksystem, wherein the message is a trigger that causes the media playbacksystem to revert to the pre-defined first state; and responsive toreceiving the message indicating that the new guest is checking into thegiven room, causing the particular media playback system to revert tothe pre-defined first state, wherein reverting the particular mediaplayback system to the pre-defined first state comprises: responsive tothe trigger, populating the queue with the first set of media items,wherein populating the queue with the first set of media items comprisesremoving, from the queue, the one or more media items associated withthe first account of the streaming media service; and responsive to thetrigger, resetting the streaming media service, wherein resetting thestreaming media service comprises removing the first account of thestreaming media service from the particular media playback system. 10.The method of claim 9, wherein the first playback device and the secondplayback device are positioned in respective locations in anenvironment, and wherein reverting the particular media playback systemto the pre-defined first state further comprises: responsive to thetrigger, applying, to the first playback device and the second playbackdevice, respective calibrations that correspond to their respectivelocations in the environment.
 11. The method of claim 9, whereinoperating the control system in the pre-defined first state furthercomprises arranging the first zone and the second zone into a zone groupconfigured to play back media items from a shared queue; and whereinreverting the particular media playback system to the pre-defined firststate further comprises: responsive to the trigger, joining the firstzone and the second zone into the zone group.
 12. The method of claim11, wherein operating the control system in the pre-defined first statefurther comprises configuring the shared queue of the zone group withthe first set of one or more media items.
 13. The method of claim 9,wherein reverting the particular media playback system to thepre-defined first state further comprises: responsive to the trigger,sending a message that resets the first zone and the second zone torespective pre-defined volume levels such that the first playback deviceand the second playback device are configured to play back media at therespective pre-defined volume levels.
 14. The method of claim 9, whereinreverting the particular media playback system to the pre-defined firststate further comprises: responsive to the trigger, sending a messagethat resets the first zone and the second zone to respective pre-definedequalizations such that the first playback device and the secondplayback device are configured to playback media with the respectivepre-defined equalizations.
 15. A non-transitory computer-readable memorystoring instructions executable by one or more processors that, whenexecuted, cause the one or more processors to perform a set ofoperations for operating a control system of a place of accommodationfor controlling a plurality of media playback systems within a place ofaccommodation, each media playback system comprising at least oneplayback device, and a particular media playback system within a givenroom of the place of accommodation comprising a first playback deviceand a second playback device, the operations comprising: sending, via anetwork interface of the control system to at least one of the firstplayback device and the second playback device, a message thatconfigures the particular media playback system to operate a pre-definedfirst state in which: a first zone of the particular media playbacksystem includes the first playback device and is assigned a first zonename, a second zone of the particular media playback system includes thesecond playback device and is assigned a second zone name, and a queueincludes a first set of one or more media items, wherein at least one ofthe first zone and the second zone is configured to play back mediaitems from the queue; operating the particular media playback system ina second state, wherein operating the particular media playback systemin the second state comprises: receiving, via a guest control device ofthe particular media playback system, input indicative of credentialsassociated with a first account of a streaming media service, whereinthe guest control device is configured to control only the particularmedia playback system; populating the queue with a second set of one ormore media items, wherein the second set of media items includes one ormore media items associated with the first account of the streamingmedia service; and causing one of the first zone and the second zone toplay back at least one of the one or more media items associated withthe first account of the streaming media service; after causing one ofthe first zone and the second zone to play back at least one of the oneor more media items associated with the first account of the streamingmedia service, receiving, via a network interface from one or moreservers of a booking system configured to manage room reservations forthe place of accommodation, a message indicating that a new guest ischecking into a given room that contains the particular media playbacksystem, wherein the message is a trigger that causes the media playbacksystem to revert to the pre-defined first state; and responsive toreceiving the message indicating that the new guest is checking into thegiven room, causing the particular media playback system to revert tothe pre-defined first state, wherein reverting the particular mediaplayback system to the pre-defined first state comprises: responsive tothe trigger, populating the queue with the first set of media items,wherein populating the queue with the first set of media items comprisesremoving, from the queue, the one or more media items associated withthe first account of the streaming media service; and responsive to thetrigger, resetting the streaming media service, wherein resetting thestreaming media service comprises removing the first account of thestreaming media service from the particular media playback system. 16.The non-transitory computer-readable memory of claim 15, whereinoperating the control system in the pre-defined first state furthercomprises arranging the first zone and the second zone into a zone groupconfigured to play back media items from a shared queue; and whereinreverting the particular media playback system to the pre-defined firststate further comprises: responsive to the trigger, joining the firstzone and the second zone into the zone group.
 17. The non-transitorycomputer-readable memory of claim 16, wherein operating the controlsystem in the pre-defined first state further comprises configuring theshared queue of the zone group with the first set of one or more mediaitems.
 18. The non-transitory computer-readable memory of claim 15,wherein reverting the particular media playback system to thepre-defined first state further comprises: responsive to the trigger,sending a message that resets the first zone and the second zone torespective pre-defined volume levels such that the first playback deviceand the second playback device are configured to play back media at therespective pre-defined volume levels.
 19. The non-transitorycomputer-readable memory of claim 15, wherein reverting the particularmedia playback system to the pre-defined first state further comprises:responsive to the trigger, sending a message that resets the first zoneand the second zone to respective pre-defined equalizations such thatthe first playback device and the second playback device are configuredto playback media with the respective pre-defined equalizations.
 20. Thenon-transitory computer-readable memory of claim 15, wherein the firstplayback device and the second playback device are positioned inrespective locations in an environment, and wherein reverting theparticular media playback system to the pre-defined first state furthercomprises: responsive to the trigger, applying, to the first playbackdevice and the second playback device, respective calibrations thatcorrespond to their respective locations in the environment.